As we finished up our readthrough Thursday night for Top Story! Weekly, we realized we didn’t have a particularly strong political sketch for that week’s show. Then we saw the video from that night of President Obama singing at the Apollo Theater:
And from there, writing the Republican candidates singing their own versions of 70′s soul hits became pretty easy. All the actors really nailed this one.
When I sent this sketch, based on the whole Haley Barbour pardon kerfuffle, in to Top Story! Weekly, I didn’t think much of it, but to my surprise it made the show. And a rewrite by Kristina Adelmeyer made it better. It’s still too long, but a return appearance by Derek Reid’s Rapey Raperson (first seen in this pirate sketch with Parvesh Cheena, which you should check out), made it worthwhile.
Our first show of 2012 was also our first show since the death of Kim Jong-Il. And given that we had our Kim, our Gaddafi, our Diego, and even our Chuck Beanster in the cast, the stars were aligned for the perfect sendoff to our favorite crazy bloodthirsty dictator. Even at 8 and a half minutes, it came out pretty “hilarious”.
Christmas gave me the chance to write the least topical thing I’ve written in a while, spurred by a comment at our writers’ meeting by Colin Hughes (no relation) about how many Christmas songs are sad. To be honest, I think some of the rewriting done here didn’t help things – Judy and Bing shouldn’t have been singing at either the top or bottom of the sketch, for instance – and the actors weren’t as precise as I would have liked. But Kipleigh Brown’s Judy Garland is a thing of beauty!
HOW (NOT) TO WRITE A HOLIDAY CLASSIC by Michael Hughes
When Rod Blagojevich got sentenced last week, I figured I’d throw myself into the cast of Top Story! Weekly to reprise my role. Jimmy and James did a great job with the pace of this one.
Mayor Villaraigosa negotiates the end of the “Occupy L.A.” protests the same week that Top Story! Weekly has Neil Garguilo (Principal Cox from MTV’s “Awkward” and iO West‘s Dr. God, and one of our regular cast members as well) in the cast? That makes it time to revisit one of our favorite recurring sketches – the telenovela with Los Angeles’ Mayor, “El Alcalde de la Pasion!!”
Last Tuesday my Facebook news feed blew up with people commenting on a news story. Occupy Wall Street? The elections? Syria or Egypt? No – the decision by NBC to take “Community” off its schedule. Thus I was inspired for this sketch – and thanks to Wikipedia for filling in the gaps in my “Community” knowledge!
When the reopening of the investigation of Natalie Wood’s death became such a huge story on Thursday and Friday – after our submission deadline – I had to think fast of a way to address it. Friday morning it hit me – have Matt Moore play Bernardo from “West Side Story.” And later I remembered that “West Side Story” has a very famous song that’s an argument…
When Brett Ratner stepped down from producing next year’s Oscars due to some ill-advised comments, I thought that a scene set in the acting class we had done just the week before would be a good venue. And the real highlight of this sketch was the relationship between Phillip Wilburn’s Byron Shelbyford and Brent Pope’s put-upon Lee.
Watch “Soul Campaign” from Top Story! Weekly Episode 134: “Not-So-Good Vibrations!”
January 28, 2012As we finished up our readthrough Thursday night for Top Story! Weekly, we realized we didn’t have a particularly strong political sketch for that week’s show. Then we saw the video from that night of President Obama singing at the Apollo Theater:
And from there, writing the Republican candidates singing their own versions of 70′s soul hits became pretty easy. All the actors really nailed this one.
SOUL CAMPAIGN by Michael Hughes
Starring Matthew Harris (Barack Obama), Brian Vestal (Mitt Romney), Brent Pope (Newt Gingrich), Phillip Wilburn (Rick Perry) and Sean Cowhig (Announcer)
Directed by Michael Hughes
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Tags: 2012 election, 2012 presidential campaign, 2012 presidential election, Al Green, Apollo Theater, Barack Obama, Brent Pope, Brian Vestal, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Let's Get It On, Let's Stay Together, Marvin Gaye, Matthew Harris, Michael Hughes, Midnight Train to Georgia, Mike Hughes, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Newt Gingrich adultery, Oops, open marriage, Phillip Wilburn, Republican presidential nomination, Rick Perry, Sean Cowhig, South Carolina, Stevie Wonder, Superstition, Top Story! Weekly
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